Perfect Potato Soup Uses An Ingredient Shortcut You'll Want To Try ASAP

Potato soup is nothing short of a delight. This dish is perfect for serving up on a cloudy, chilly day, and can be made with has few as three ingredients (if you make it in the style of cheap Depression-era dining). Making said potato soup, however, can be a bit of an onerous task. All that peeling, boiling, and mashing of said potatoes is an endeavor all on its own. But this needn't be the case, as there is one shortcut that can make the soup easier to prepare without diminishing that homemade taste. Simply use frozen steam and mash potatoes (famously sold by the Ore-Ida brand) instead of the whole, unpeeled kind.

For the uninitiated, steam and mash potatoes are large, frozen bags of chopped and peeled potatoes that you pop in the microwave to steam before mashing. My favorite use for this bagged, pre-prepped potato wonder isn't for mashed potatoes, however. No, for those I prefer to bake my spuds for better flavor and texture. Instead, I use this frozen option as a shortcut for prepping potatoes when making soup. 

Since these potatoes are already peeled and chopped, you can skip all of the cutting and prep work. Plus, there is no need to sit around waiting for any pot of water to boil. Just place your bag in the microwave and heat according to the package instructions. Then, you can pop them into your soup base and use an immersion blender to make that gorgeous smooth and creamy potato soup, ready for any added milk and cheese as a final touch.

Still not convinced about the benefits of steam and mash potatoes? Stay with me. Not only will using these pre-packaged microwavable spuds help save you time, but they can also make for a better end result. Compared to boiling, steaming potatoes in the microwave this way cooks them quickly and without added moisture, keeping them from turning into a diluted, soggy mess. Instead, you'll get a better potato flavor and a lighter texture.

These benefits are pretty obviously a plus for mashed potatoes, but they also makes for a better  soup, as these spuds won't dilute the flavor of your base. So your potato soup will taste more like, well, potatoes, and less like potato water. Now, if you are firmly committed to the boil-a-spud life, you could still try to use these steam and mash potatoes by popping them into a pot of boiling water or broth. They will still cut down on peeling and slicing time while allowing for the boiled potato experience — but be careful not to overcook them lest they turn soggy. Or, if you don't have any steam and mash bags on hand, you can always use a bag of frozen hash browns instead for a fast and flavorful potato soup. Don't be afraid to get creative.